projectupland.com On The Go

There are several locations where hunters can experience a multi-species outing in one day. Sometimes, hunters encounter multiple species in a single field. Pheasants and bobwhite quail are frequently placed in the same game bag during a single walk. Woodcock and ruffed grouse are probably the most common combination. But there is one combination that I have always found intriguing: greater prairie chickens and sharp-tailed grouse. Not only can these two species be harvested in the same hunt, but they can be harvested in the same covey flush. 

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I’m not sure if it was the trendiness of chukar hunting on social media or the fact that 2020 had everyone stuck at home and thinking of new things to try, but it sure seemed like chukar hunter numbers were at an all-time high this season in my neck of the woods. That even includes me, since this was my first season of seriously targeting chukar instead of just going a few times as a change of pace from quail or ducks. If we are truly serious about hunter recruitment and increasing hunter numbers, this growth in interest is great news! Even so, there’s always a sharp pang of disappointment when you arrive at your favorite spot to find another hunter already there…even for the most enthusiastic supporters of R3 efforts.

With the influx of upland bird hunters ought to come an influx of discussions about hunter etiquette while in the field. I make no claims of being an expert, neither in bird hunting nor in consistently good etiquette. I am sure that I have unintentionally done things that have annoyed another hunter or affected their day afield. But along with how-to articles and photos of our time in the mountains, I believe it’s our responsibility to share perspectives on good etiquette to help new (and returning) hunters navigate some of these gray areas.

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When winter sets in, the mornings become considerably colder, and the air feels like a whip against any uncovered skin. No one understands this better than the waterfowl hunter. The season starts where summer and fall meet. As December arrives and winter becomes official, the crowds diminish with the arrival of the ice. The waterfowl hunters who persist and venture into this season often find some of the best opportunities. Open water is a welcome spot for ducks to land. Consequently, the best opportunities for jump shooting ducks arise once the ice sets in.

One of the places I like to hunt in the winter is filled with hot water springs that feed into a lake. When the ice forms, ducks don’t tend to stick around, but they do like to hang out in these open holes. The ice also drives the ducks to streams and canals—really, anywhere there is open, moving water. Most of these places tend to have food available for ducks, which is particularly helpful when heavy snow covers the ground. Access to food is important for ducks to stay warm. Being able to locate these food sources makes jump shooting even more effective.

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The gentle “Chi-ca-go-go” in the distance caught my attention as I made my way down the rocky wash. A quick glance upward had me convinced that the birds were on the hillside, more vertical than not; a grade covered summit-to-base in loose rocks and cholla. These dang Gambel’s quail were doing their best chukar impressions here in the heart of the Sonoran Desert.

I crept up the wash with a watchful eye scanning for movement up ahead. While my eyes did their job, my ears added to the tale. Multiple quail were calling up ahead, with the concave shape of the hillside amplifying their quail calls toward my unwanted attention. The quail weren’t the only ones keeping my ears busy, however. All around there were noise makers such as rabbits sneaking away in the undergrowth and lizards careening through the dry grass, sounding much larger than their three-inch bodies should be able to sound. It was enough to keep my head turning to distinguish friend from foe.

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Hunters throughout the uplands walk many miles each season in pursuit of various quail species.  From the bobwhites in the Southeast, Gambel’s and scaled quail in the desert Southwest, Mearns and mountain quail in the hills, and California quail throughout the west, several million birds are shot on the wing, loaded in game bags, and eventually cleaned and consumed. Sure, most hunters will note the sex of each bird harvested, but there is one more piece of data that is often skipped by most hunters: aging their birds. For many game birds, distinguishing between juvenile and adult is fairly easy, and quail are no exception. In fact, quail lend themselves to determining the actual hatch date of a juvenile to within just a few days of when the bird pipped its way out of a quarter-sized egg. This information can add a bit of scientific fun for an upland junkie, but can also be useful information to help explain previous reproductive output and possibly even help guide future habitat management.

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There are six quail species that comprise the quail slam in the United States. They belong to the Odontophoridae family and are sometimes referred to as New World quail. The six huntable species are the bobwhite, mountain, California (valley), scaled (blue), Mearns (Montezuma), and Gambel’s quail. They represent a broad swath of the United States; however, except for the bobwhite quail, they are all found exclusively in the Western United States.

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Inside a multi-million dollar mansion, I took a seat around a large wooden table in such pristine condition that I was afraid to touch it. A glass of water sat in front of each occupied seat, giving the space the air of a boardroom. The year was 2017, and my unfamiliar surroundings gave me the sense that I was struggling to translate my idea of what Project Upland Magazine should be.

“We have to change the name. It cannot be called Project Upland.”

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Truth be told, there is no foolproof method for ensuring that you never serve shot in the birds that you cook. However, there are several techniques to help reduce the chances of doing so, as well as some things to keep in mind if you’re worried about dishing out a smattering of shot with your upland meals.

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The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) is the federal agency responsible for managing the National Wildlife Refuge System. To manage the hundreds of refuges that expand across the United States, the USFWS establishes regulations and implements federal laws.

For those unfamiliar with federal regulations or the regulatory process in general, it would help to understand the basics of what federal regulations exactly are. 

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Each fall, pheasants draw attention from hunters across the country. Their parrot-like colors strike awe in any bird hunter. Thousands of these beautiful birds are harvested during the first few days of the season. Most birds packed out during opening weekend are young birds born months before the orange army started marching. 

There are two reasons young birds represent the bulk of the early harvest. First, juveniles dominate the overall population. Like most upland game birds, pheasants rely on annual production to sustain the population. It’s not unusual for juveniles to comprise up to 80 percent of the population after a summer of good nesting and brood-rearing success. Second, young pheasants are typically not as wary as their older relatives. However, even though these youngsters have never evaded a hunter following a bird dog, many still have enough instinct to know something isn’t right.

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